1. Field
The present invention relates to glass ribbons and, more particularly, to structures and methods for splicing portions of glass ribbons to one another or to leader/trailer materials.
2. Technical Background
There is interest in using glass in roll-to-roll fabrication of flexible electronic or other devices. Glass has several beneficial properties related to either the fabrication or performance of electronic devices. Currently these devices are being fabricated on polymer film or metal foil because a complete solution for the use of flexible glass does not exist. Use of polymer or metal substrates results in either reduced end device performance or increased cost. A more complete solution for the use of flexible glass in roll-to-roll processes would accelerate its adoption into this application.
One missing component in the use of spooled flexible glass in roll-to-roll processes is a practical method to splice glass ribbon (either be it one glass portion to another, or a glass portion to a leader/trailer material). In roll-to-roll manufacturing situations, there is a common requirement to be able to splice web materials together. The solutions for splicing common web materials such as polymer, paper, metal, and other webs, are not appropriate for glass because of the different material properties involved, notably the brittle nature of glass. Accordingly, there is a need for practical solutions for splicing glass ribbon portions to one another or to other web materials, for example leader/trailer material.